Technology

London maps its worst mobile black spots as Khan unveils connectivity plan

Inner north and east boroughs lag the City as tall buildings crowd out antennas, mayor owns neither the spectrum nor the masts

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Why doesn't my 5G work in central London? Expert explains Why doesn't my 5G work in central London? Expert explains standard.co.uk
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, today set out the next phase of the introduction of high-speed mobile coverage across the Tube network as the first stations in the West End got 4G and 5G mobile coverage. The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, today set out the next phase of the introduction of high-speed mobile coverage across the Tube network as the first stations in the West End got 4G and 5G mobile coverage. standard.co.uk
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan on the phone during the BGC annual charity day at their offices in Canary Wharf, London (Yui Mok/PA) Mayor of London Sadiq Khan on the phone during the BGC annual charity day at their offices in Canary Wharf, London (Yui Mok/PA) standard.co.uk
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London now has a map of its worst mobile black spots. Sadiq Khan's office has published a London Mobile Connectivity Evidence Report, developed with the connectivity data firm Ookla, and the picture it draws is of a first-rank capital with patchy reception: Camden, Islington, Hackney and Tower Hamlets record weaker signal than the City of London, Kensington and Chelsea, Newham, Lambeth, and Hammersmith and Fulham.

The causes are structural rather than mysterious. The Standard reported in June that signal in the heart of the capital is deteriorating because of "bottlenecks" on the network — fewer antenna sites squeezed out by housing and other developments, combined with more tall buildings, with the worst congestion near busy Tube and rail stations. In September the paper reported that London is falling behind other major world cities on mobile reception, and Mobile UK, the trade body representing the operators themselves, concedes the capital "continues to lag frustratingly behind other international hubs."

The mayor's response is a document. The report sets out ten actions boroughs can take: appoint dedicated mobile connectivity officers, identify council-owned buildings and land that could host network equipment, and ensure plans for major developments consider connectivity from the outset. City Hall's own framing concedes the limits of the office: mobile operators are responsible for investing in, building and running their networks, while the mayor can help by removing barriers through planning policy, access to TfL assets and coordination between boroughs, landowners, developers and industry. Khan owns neither spectrum nor a single mast.

There has been progress, of a kind. Coverage across the London Underground has reached 70 percent and is on track to be completed by the end of the year, and the Connected London programme has invested £30 million since 2017 in upgrading public assets such as libraries and CCTV columns from copper to fibre. The above-ground gaps persist where antenna sites have been squeezed out by development — a problem a report can describe but only an operator's capital budget can fix.

The Underground will be fully connected by the end of the year. Above ground, the first recommendation to each borough is to appoint a dedicated mobile connectivity officer.